The client had never attained a driver’s licence in Australia, and had driven without a licence for many years. Over the course of this time, the client had been convicted on numerous occasions of driving whilst unlicenced, and of driving whilst disqualified.

The client was subsequently detected by Police driving whilst disqualified on two occasions within weeks of each other. On the first occasion, the client had provided Police with a false identity in an attempt to avoid being charged. On the second occasion, the client has attempted to swap places with a passenger in the car to persuade Police that the passenger was driving. After pleading guilty, the client was sentenced to a period of 12 months in gaol, with a non-parole period of 6 months for both matters, and was refused bail pending his appeal. The client approached Nyman Gibson Miralis to appeal this sentence.

Case Result

The matter came before the Sydney District Court on appeal. The single objective for the client was to be released from full time custody. It was submitted at the appeal that although the client’s record was poor, his need to be at liberty to support an extended family and otherwise strong community ties and involvements, justified his released from custody.

However, it was conceded freely that his previous driving record mandated some form of appropriate penalty being imposed. The Judge was impressed by the client’s willingness to accept responsibility for his actions and to appreciate that some form of punishment had to be imposed. However, accepting the need to support his family, the appeal was upheld, and the period of imprisonment was replaced with a period of weekend (periodic) detention. The client was released from custody at court on the day.